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PDF versionVatican stress on environment in Peace Day theme
by John L Allen Jr on Jul. 29, 2009
In yet another sign of growing environmental advocacy under Pope Benedict XVI, the Vatican announced this morning that the theme of its World Peace Day in 2010 will be, "If you want to cultivate peace, take care of creation."
According to a statement released this morning, the thrust of Benedict XVI's message for the next World Peace Day will be that promoting peace in the world requires resolving what the Vatican referred to as "the present ecological crisis."
The Vatican cited several environmental challenges:
* Over-use of natural resources
* Climate change
* New developments in biotechnology
* Demographic trends
"Care of the environment must constitute a challenge for all humanity," the statement said. "It’s a matter of a duty, common and universal, to respect a collective good."
World Peace Day was launched by the Catholic Church in 1967 under Pope Paul VI, in an effort to promote awareness of teaching on peace contained in the encyclical letters Pacem in Terris of Pope John XXIII and Populorum Progressio of Pope Paul VI. Paul VI chose to mark the event on January 1 on the theory that because it was not a specifically religious day, it would signal the church's desire to appeal to all people on behalf of peace.
Pope Benedict XVI's message for World Peace Day is expected to be released in early December.
The following is the full text of the Vatican statement released this morning, in an NCR translation from the Italian:
COMMUNICATION: THEME OF THE 43RD WORLD DAY OF PEACE(JANUARY 1, 2010)
The next message for the World Day of Peace, which will be celebrated on January 1, 2010, will be dedicated to the following theme: If you want to cultivate peace, take care of creation. The theme intends to solicit awareness of the close connection that exists in our globalized and interconnected world between safeguarding creation and cultivating the good of peace. That close and intimate connection, in fact, is increasingly placed in discussion by numerous problems regarding the natural environment of the human person, such as the use of resources, climate changes, the application and use of biotechnology, and demographic growth. If the human family does not know how to confront these challenges with a renewed sense of justice, social equity and international solidarity, it runs the risk of seeding violence among peoples and among present and future generations.
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Following the precious indications contained in numbers 48-51 of the encyclical letter Caritas in Veritate, the papal message will underline the urgency that care of the environment must constitute a challenge for all humanity: it’s a matter of a duty, common and universal, to respect a collective good, destined for all, preventing use with impunity of the different categories of beings according to one’s wishes. It’s a responsibility that has to mature on the basis of the global character of the present ecological crisis and the consequent necessity to deal with it globally, given that all beings depend upon one another in the universal order established by the Creator.
In order to cultivate the good of peace, a renewed awareness must be favored of the interdependence that connects all the inhabitants of the earth. That awareness will serve to eliminate diverse causes of ecological disasters and will guarantee a timely capacity to respond when those disasters strike peoples and territories. The ecological question must not be approached only because of the frightening possibilities that environmental degradation presents: it must be translated, above all, into a strong motivation for cultivating peace.
God Bless Pope Benedict XVI
God Bless Pope Benedict XVI and our eco-system
Creation/ nature has put all
Creation/ nature has put all humankind on life's same page. It's long overdue that religions get on the same page and recognize human commonality. RIGHT ON, POPE BENEDICT!!!
It should be noted that the "
It should be noted that the " Vatican " does not necessarily speak for the Pope. If the World Day of Peace is going to address climate change it risks being discredited. There is nothing mankind or its science or its laws and regulations can do to change the climate. Man does not cause climate change. It has been going on for millions of years. We have been both much warmer and also much colder that we are now, yet mankind did not exist during most of these changes. Therefore climate change is a purely natural phenomenon, attributeable mostly to the action of the sun. Secondarily, it is caused by catestrophic events such as volcanic eruptions and earth quakes.
And while it sounds grand to say we should conserve our use of carbon fuels, the fact is that modern life depends on their use. There is no viable alternative in sight. Should we share these resources? Sure and we should not abuse their use.
Dear "It should be noted that
Dear "It should be noted that the,"
I respectfully disagree. While I have been studying the issue and all views - both for and against human cause of climate change, there are many studies that say human activity IS part of the problem. Common sense tells us that smog and "belching" from industrial plants can't be good for our skies and don't simply disappear and have no effect. To say that it's "purely" a natural phenomenon is to ignore not only a good deal of evidence that DOES point to human activity as a cause (and I'm not saying it's the only cause or to what degree we affect the environment, though from what I've read, it's more than we ever know.
Also, I'm wondering where you got "there is no viable alternative in sight." That's a pretty brazen (and incorrect) statement to make, simply b/c there is so much. To be confident of making such a statement, you'd have to prove - and prove being the operative word here - that no wind, solar or other alternative energy options already in place and could be implemented are having no effect and could do nothing.
Finally, whether people like to admit it or not, our resources are abused every day, by plants and companies owned by people who place profit over considering that whether gouging the earth and maligning the ecology cannot be undone.
There are many claims in your comment that simply aren't the case. If there was absolutely no other evidence out there, your statement would have stronger substance. As it is, your information could be wrong, and so could mine. And when it comes down to a bottom line like that, thoughtful debate with the intent to come up with an answer that will address both care for the environment AND economical concerns of the people is in order - not black-and-white statements that result from a false certainty.
Thank you for helping me to think about this further,
Tina
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